Prepping for Baby: The Diaper Dilemma

By Kellene, Preparedness Pro on 11 July 2013 - 11:35pm

Ah…prepping for babies.

I just LOVE babies. I don’t care if they’re crying or fussing or beautifully sound asleep, I just love them. They are so snuggly and precious—those smiles that melt your heart like nothing else can. Those cute little feet that you swear you could just gobble up. Somehow their curiosity helps us see the world through a new set of eyes. Their inherent innocence and vulnerability that we see in their eyes is sure to make even the most stoic parent feel humbled, and not just a little bit unprepared in fulfilling the humble task of raising them to be wonderful adults someday. *contented sigh* How daunting is their childlike faith that they so generously grant us—faith that we’ll provide for every possible need that they’ll ever have. That angelic look on their peaceful faces when they’ve fallen asleep in your arms melts the heart of every caregiver.

Yup, babies are so wonderful on so many levels, but our inadequacies are heightened when we consider all that is necessary in order to prepare to protect them and provide for them in the midst of a crisis. If you think about it, the whole process prior to the arrival of a new little one is all about “preparing”, though some refer to it as nesting. Oh, and the diaper bags… they are practically magical as Mom and Dad try to preemptively ensure every need that they—and WE—will have. We try to think of anything and everything that will make the screaming stop, the crying soothed, the fussiness distracted. And let’s not forget the never-ending journey we set upon to find the perfect, promising tool that will be up to the match of the somewhat nuclear disasters that we get to deal with every 90 minutes—or less.

A preppers nightmare--how do I get enough diapers??

The almighty diaper. You know of course that the meaning behind the famous song “The Impossible Dream” was based on the never-ending journey of a diaper that was waterproof, yucky proof, leak proof, and ick proof, right? *grin* If you want to get more out of the next installment of “The Hobbit”, understand that what they are really after is a baby diaper that can eliminate “blow outs” without threatening to break every household budget. Yep. There are no greater horrors to a parent than running out of diapers!

“What? You’re threatening me with waterboarding if I don’t talk? Oh come now Mr. Evil One, I’ve run out of diapers in the middle of Sunday School after feeding my child prunes, while wearing my new Easter dress! How one little 8 pound bundle of joy can deliver such a horrible, stinky mess that makes a 9.9 earthquake look like a hiccup, I’ll never know!”

Teton Dam break in 1956 to Hurricane Sandy 2013—amidst the aftermath of all similar disasters which affect families, the NUMBER ONE requested item has always been DIAPERS!! But they certainly aren’t cheap; and a year’s supply of diapers for ONE child is approximately $720. They’re bulky too. I don’t have to be a statistician to know that a year’s worth of diapers takes up a LOT of space. Even though I haven’t been blessed with children of my own, I still purchase diapers when I get a great deal on them with my couponing. I’m frustrated with the fact that I’ve had to dedicate an entire shelf in my large metal shelving units and yet I only have about 30 packs in varying sizes. That brings me to the other challenge in one’s efforts of trying to be prepared with enough diapers. How in the world can one estimate what diaper size their children will need when we have to live through a society down scenario?!

I realize that there are some inherent downsides to cloth diapers, but let’s face it, there’s really no other solution in a long-term crisis scenario. So in spite of the bum rap (hee hee) of the increase in laundry loads that one does and the initial costs of the cloth diapers, cloth diapers are the only reliable option in a true self-sufficient lifestyle. That being said though, there are many characteristics that I don’t remember fondly when it comes to cloth diapers. I remember them as leaking, messy, unattractive, options that only “poor folks” had to use. I’ll never forget the horrid experience I had once in taking care of my little brothers “explosion” in a cloth diaper with a plastic pants on the outside. But when faced with stocking up on disposable diapers, it doesn’t seem like there’s really any other option.

As I began researching the use of cloth diapers in today’s world, I found out a lot of things about disposable diapers that motivated me all the more into the “disposable diaper camp.” For example, I’ve found myself more aware of the environment impacts that all of the disposable diapers have on our drinking water supplies (thanks to the dioxins) and I’m none too happy about exposing a baby to the other harmful content of a diaper—especially since the reproductive system is so vulnerable to absorbing those harmful contents such as VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), SAP (Sodium Polyacralate), chlorine, and now GMO corn and soy products. Ugh! And there’s nothing “feel good” in knowing that disposable diapers require hundreds of years to properly break down in our dumps, either. It’s also not lost on me that the cost of diapers has far outpaced the average raise increases lately. (sometimes I swear that “they” see that so many people would never dream of doing without their disposable diapers and so they just keep increasing the price as far as they can—just to the point where it makes one wince. It’s not like we’re seeing ANY efforts in the disposable diaper industry to find a way to create them more affordable, let alone safe for the babies. I was quite shocked to learn of all of the rashes and other ails that those cute little ones have to endure thanks to the toxicity of disposable diapers. So, cloth diapers it is…but can I get past the “dislikes” that I remember from my childhood?

Cloth Diapers for Preppers!

Thank goodness though, cloth diapers come a LONG way nowadays—and so has the culture of acceptance. If a gal wants to do disposable diapers, then she can pay for a diaper cleaning service that’s less than HALF the cost of what they’d have to spend on disposable diapers—and that doesn’t take into consideration the electricity, water and detergent that one would have to spend to clean them at home. And better yet, after researching 12 prominent brands in the industry, including Bum Genius and Thirsties, I believe I stumbled upon a brand and design, etc. that I can direct you towards. Better yet, the wonderful owner of the company generously provided me with samples to play with and a couple of them to give away to two of our lucky readers too. *grin*

The brand? Naughty Baby found over at MyNaughtyBaby.com. At only $7.95 each and beautifully designed for boys and girls with plenty of cute looks that make you want to “awwww” and have a baby if for no other purpose than to see them in one of these cute cloth diapers. But if you order ten of their diapers at a time, you get free shipping and if you order their 3 packs you’re price per diaper comes down to $7.30 each and if you order in their 10 packs the price comes down to only $6.88 each. They definitely pass the preliminary aesthetic test. I also LOVE the fabric that they use on the outside which is part polyester and “minky” fabric. I just love how snuggly it feels. The inside of the diaper is a special PUL fabric which makes them waterproof, which, when coupled with the elastic legs, help to make them leak proof! But more importantly, they passed a critical functionality test. They are adjustable both horizontally and vertically making them fabulous for a 6 pound baby up to 31 pound child that you’re trying to potty train. Each diaper also comes with a triple microfiber insert for more absorbent power. I went to Target to check out their version of this. They sell the diaper itself for $19 and $7 for the inserts! Ack! $26 for what you can get at MyNaughtyBaby.com for only $7.95. And while I’m fashion-challenged at times, I still think that I can tell what is and isn’t stylish and Target had nothing on the cute designs that Naugthy Baby has.

Another cool improvement for cloth diapers are the special biodegradable inserts that Naughty Baby also offers. They go INSIDE the diaper, right against the baby’s skin, that makes big mess clean ups much more bearable as you simply throw the nappy in the toilet and flush. They aren’t harmful to the environment or your septic system thanks to their biodegradable features. As you can see, I'm thoroughly impressed. In fact the only thing I didn't like about the Naughty Baby company is that their website is woefully inadequate--Yawn and missing a great deal of information that could only be had if you actually interviewed the owner of the company. Tsk Tsk. I'm sure I can make some copywriting suggestions for them.

As it turns out, your efforts to solve a preparedness problem (as well as a financial problem and a healthier baby issue) are being solved by a man who’s also passionate about preparedness. Mark Elliot is the head hauncho over at My Naughty Baby and while you can purchase Naughty Baby designs in several places, Mark is a prepper and I like to do whatever I can do to help support entrepreneurial preppers. After all, the money that I help them earn may help someone I love someday, right? Anyway, Mark has generously provided me with two adorable girl designs and two adorable boy designs which I’m going to send to two lucky Preparedness Pro readers. I’ll do a random selection for the two winners from the pool of commenters on this article on on July 19th, 2013, and announce the winner right afterwards. So if you’d like to win one of these sets then go ahead and post your comment below. You can ONLY post ONE comment per computer and household though.

Bottom line—hee hee—yup, pun intended—I look at this cloth diaper solution this way…I can spend $75 on cloth diapers this month and then NOT have to spend the $60-$75 on disposable diapers next month. I’ll be putting myself in a better position of self-sufficiency, including a better financial position, and I’ll be providing a much more healthy option for the wee ones, and doing my part to take care of the world around me including the drinking water and the land—all while making that little bundle of joy stylish and snuggly. What more could I ask for? Now all you need is to be able to create your own wet wipes. Don’t worry. We gotcha covered on that one too—coming soon. *wink* dilemma

Comments

Submitted by Bina on 18 July 2013 - 5:20am

With a full-time job--I'm my family's 'breadwinner' as my husband lost his job--and 5 young children, I have very little free/"me" time, but in the little bit that I have, I either do something related to prepping, or I think about prepping. One of those related-to-prepping activities is reading this awesome site (usually while nursing my four-month-old son), although I've not commented here before. (Sorry!) I've been a bit negligent in doing more preps for the baby, so this post is a great reminder. Thanks, Kellene! Cloth diapers are SO useful for so many purposes! I love them--although disposables are useful, too--and really should get more of them.
I'd type more but the baby just woke up (needing a diaper change; LOL)! Looking forward to reading more!

A friends daughter just had a new baby boy, an my sister said give them disposable diapers.....not my style.
If cloth diapers were good enough for us growing up, then I would purchase cloth diapers for the new one.
Now I know where I am going for cloth diapers. Like you, disposables are great if you traveling and need a quick fix on the bum. In making them a lifestyle, look at all the money they are literally throwing away for convenience sake. Time to break bad habits for the next generations to follow.

Rebecca Alley is the winner for the Severe Storm Preparedness Giveaway from STABIL.
Rose of Prepping in the Garden won one of the Naughty Baby Cloth Diaper sets and
Matt who's waiting on baby #6 to arrive won the other drawing. :-)

Congrats to all of our winners! And a special thanks to MyNaughtyBaby.com and Gold Eagle Co. who sponsored the special pack from STABIL and Start Your Engines. :-)

If you're one of the owners you need to provide me your mailing address (no PO boxes) within 48 hours so that we can ship you your prize!!!

I am a big fan and have been slowly but surely making preparations. I am married with 5 children and our first grandbaby is due thanksgiving. I believe they will do the disposable route, but I would love to have an alternative and a back up for TEOTWAWKI. With 5 children more grandbabies are sure to follow and I will need to be prepared :)

I can't wait to order some! I've been looking for a great all-in-one system to put away for prepping and to put in my daughter's hope chest. These look like the answer! We used cloth for my daughter, back in the early days of the cloth diaper revival, but those were still flat-folds. This seems like a great improvement. Thanks, Kellene!

Being the eldest of five, I experienced using the cloth diaper changing three siblings at the age of 12 years. So when it was my time to have children, I had chosen to use disposable diapers. I wanted it lots easier. Now that I'm older and I hope wiser, I have been looking for something healthier but easy at the same time to diaper my newset member. I have been relying on friends and their experiences with organic and the newest kinds of cloth diapers with mixed reviews. I'm on information overload at tmes. My husband ran across your article and wanting to hope for the best and prepare for the worst, I would like to have extra diapers on hand for that rainy day. We will have to give these a try.

Deborah,
It sounds like you had a hard time with the cloth diapers! You may find, if you ever need this info in the future, that sunshine is the best cure for cloth diapering problems. It sounds as if your diapers' pH levels were off or you had a yeast problem. Rinse, rinse, rinse, and then hang in full sunlight. And if you can get that cute little bare-but-rashy baby tushie out in the breezy sunshine, mores the better, lol! The sun really is one of the best disinfectants going!

What a great alternative! My daughter has 2 kids in diapers at the same time and spends a tremendous amount on disposables! She tried regular cloth diapers and it was an utter disaster for her. I think this is just what the doctor ordered :-)

I own a daycare in Texas and I have always said if I could find a way to recycle diapers we would have a growing concern. We change diapers on the hour (we have too many wee ones with allergies- so we avoid diaper rash.) I would love to be able to refer my clients to these.

Thank you so much for your shout-out to cloth diapers! I LOVE cloth diapering. My oldest is in cloth diapers and we have saved so much money and haven't had to deal with much rash or any of that chemical gunk that I hated so much in feminine hygiene products before I discovered alternatives. With two on the way, we are very grateful for the inexpensive-ness and new innovations of cloth diapers. Thanks for pointing out this brand. I've been doing some research to step up from hand-me-down covers and flat diapers (which I love anyway, but hubby and babysitter and family...not so much), so I had them written down, but hadn't looked into them yet. Thanks for passing the cloth diaper love around with give-aways, and if I get one I'll love it even more! Still saving up for the initial diaper buy for the newborns on their way.

My youngest of 5 is 16 yrs old, so it has been awhile since I have had the need to purchase diapers. These look great for gifts at baby showers and the like. My only question is this: if by chance the baby "misses" the replaceable liner and gets on the actual diaper, is it cleanable in the washing mashine? I was unable to find anything on the website.
Thank you very much for all you do.

Wow! What a great product. I have been so worried about not having diapers for my youngest grand baby in an emergency situation. I am prepping for my husband, myself, my two adult children, their spouses and my five grandchildren. My space is very limited, and my funds are low, so diapers have been low on my priority list. Thank you so much for this article. Ordering some of these will put my mind at ease while not taking up much space or breaking the bank.

Where were these when mine were babies?!?! Daughter #3 is expecting identical twin boys. I will be purchasing these for her and for me because I will have these babies a LOT! (It will be her 4th and 5th) Can't wait! Hope to be a winner!

We have a 7 week old precious little girl. My mother in law suggested I use disposables for the first few months of her life as she is our first and the learning curve is steep. Now that she is just about 2 months old we are avidly looking to cloth diapers as an emergency backup and really love that we can be sustainable and in style with this product!

Wow, I wish I had known about these 2 years ago. I but the chlorine free brand from King Soopers/Krogers. I am very conscious of everything with Chlorine in it as I am allergic to it. My son has just about outgrown this brand and I have been unable to find an alternative brand as Earth's Best is just too expensive. You have just given me my alternative. I have a inflammatory Connective tissue disease and cloth scared me away as it's hard enough to change diapers let alone have to wash them. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

We were in the middle of moving when my baby was born. We planned to use cloth this time around, but it just didn't work out in the busy-ness of it all. We're now re-settled and just last week I mentioned a diaper coupon at Costco and my hubby said, "I'm tired of paying for diapers! Weren't we going to do cloth?" We bought some years ago for our preps but we know we should really put them to use! The style we have are not my favorite, though (he got what sounded decent and was cheaper, but we didn't know a thing about them) so I have been looking to try something else! I would love to give these a go with my little guy!

I tried using cloth diapers on my son when he was a baby but it was a horrible experience. I never let my baby have a wet diaper on long because I hated the thought of him being wet. Yet, even though I was diligent in trying to keep him as dry as possible, he always got diaper rash. I tried cloth twice and both time it happened to him. I stopped using them and went back to Luvs and he never had diaper rash again. I am not sure if when TSHTF cloth will be the way to go. There may be limited amounts of water and if the cloth diapers are not cleaned in a sanitary way what could happen to a baby.

Expecting my first grandbaby next month! YES! She is a girl and I am going to be called Ama (short a). Can't wait. I and my husband are stocking up for all of our 5 children whether they are in the home or not. Already started to stock the white ones, pins and plastic pants but these...whoa, they sound nice. I am going to check these lil babies out and get some. If I win, I'll be that much more prepared. I originally started to stock up diapers because I hated the thought of some new mama having one more thing to worry about and if she showed up on my doorstep, I wanted to help.

Thanks for all the wonderful info. This is very useful information even for those without young children at home. Grandchildren, friends and neighbors could be really bummed out (ha!) if they find themselves in a emergency situation without diapers. Always good to be able to help! Thanks for the research!!

I was so excited to see you write about cloth diapers! There are so many out there to choose from today. I tried 3 other brands and we wound up going back to disposables :(. Looks like I'm going to try this one now, thanks for the info here Kellene!

I thought that I had thought of every possibility when it comes to prepping scenarios, but you really GOT me on this one. I have never thought about the need to stock up on diapers....just food, water, medicine, and fishing poles.

I like the wisdom of your thought processes, Kellene. Even though I won't be having babies, there will likely be grandbabies at some point. It would behoove me to prepare for that probable event, to make the joy a more relaxed JOY.

Yes, LOVE cloth diapers for lots of reasons including emergency situations. I'm going to have to look into Naught Baby brand. Haven't heard of them before. Another great brand (and also an inexpensive option) is [REDACTED for inappropriate marketing content]

There's a more appropriate and considerate ways to make alternative suggestions to people about other cloth diaper options outside of the Naughty Baby Diapers than doing so on the very website in which this man has generously provided two diaper sets to be given away to one of our readers. I certainly wouldn't show up to dinner at Grandma's house and thank her for going to the trouble of cooking for me by saying "Hey Grandma, Aunt Beatrice is serving a better dinner that's even closer to my house than this." *smh*

Furthermore, as a part of the research in solving the cloth diaper dilemma that I mentioned in the article, I've actually looked into the brand you mentioned (which I've redacted in the interest of being considerate and grateful to Mr. Elliott) and I personally wasn't impressed with them, their durability, ease of use, or their aesthetics as I was with the Naughty Baby brand. When you start out with a cheap product, you're not going to have anything more than shreds once you find yourself having to wash them with a washboard or on the rocks in a society down scenario.

Furthermore, unlike the Naughty Baby diapers, they have a one size that fits 6 pounds to 31 pounds; and the brand you suggested requires the purchase of different sizes thus just returning me back to a guessing game scenario that I didn't want to deal with. All of this actually makes your suggested diapers MORE expensive with an inferior design than that of Naughty Baby Brand. It's because of this reason and more that I didn't find them worthy to highlight.

Jacee...thanks for letting me know that they had stuff missing on their site. I've contacted them and they were midstream on making content changes. I refuse to recommend a product that doesn't have basic contact and product and privacy and return info on there. It should be fine now and they welcome your questions in their Contact Us section of their site.

I used cloth diapers with all four of my boys...my youngest is 19. Rarely did they ever have a rash, and we never ran out of diapers! My mother in law even made some cute diapers similar to the Nayghtybaby diapers!! I am a 100% advocate of using cloth diapers!

My daughter is pregnant after trying for ten years with no luck. She has finally been blessed. We have been debating the diaper issue. This looks to me like a very viable alternative to white diapers with pins!

I wish they had these when my kids were babies. I used cloth diapers for all 3 and no diaper service either. I'll never forget the times I had to wash them by hand (or in my case at times when the washer wasn't working, by feet in the bathtub, yeah, I'd fill the tub with hot water, let the soak a bit, then get in and stomp them to death!).
Please do not draw my name!! I am 52 and not planning on having any more.....I just had to comment on these cute diapers!

I am so glad I found your article, We just found out our 2 year old great grandson is going to be a big brother! Now I know exactly what to get my granddaughter and her husband. I love all the reseach you do for us, saves me tons of time and money. Keep up the great work.

I agree with JL. I think it is a good idea as well to have a few disposables as back-up in case of emergencies. But primarily using cloth diapers is the way to go. I cringe thinking of all the disposables I used for my boys and daughter that are sitting in a landfill somewhere...shame on me for not becoming planet conscientious back then!

It's been niggling my mind that I need to stock up on diapers for my granddaughter since I can't convince my son of the need for prepping, yet put off getting started for the reasons you listed. These adjustable size cloth diapers sound like the perfect solution!

As an older sister of 6, I grew up with a mom who used cloth diapers. As a mother of 4, I naturally went to cloth for 2 reasons, disposables were expensive and well, I was used to cloth. Nowadays, the only diapers new parents understand are disposables. Toss and go, except the smell does linger while they accumulate and I hate to think of the environmental impact too. Now, newest granddaughter is here, 5 weeks old, and she already has a rash and I'm asking, which diaper are you using. I would love to win so we could try this on her.

Wow, that's a really great price for the new style of cloth diapers! S far we have 9 grandchildren, with four in diapers. More to follow since we still have five more children to marry and start their families. I'd love to be able to try these with the grand babies, and purchase some for each of the little ones.

My youngest is close to potty-training, thank goodness. I wish I had done more looking into hybrid diapers--cloth with disposable insert--I could have saved my self a lot of money. Though I rarely pay full price for diapers, I stock up on cases of disposables when they are on sale, and stores frequently pair a sale price with an offer like free gift cards when you buy a certain number of cases. But like you said, those cases of diapers take up so much storage space! Anyway, I'm glad I'm almost done with this diaper business.

Thank you for posting this. I wanted cloth diapers for my son but everyone talked me out of it saying how terrible and inconvenient they are. My husband doesn't want to deal with it. But as I am a budding prepper and still growing my family I really want to try them out. Thank you for posting this. because you are right. Targets prices are outrageous!! If I won the giveaway maybe I could convince my husband they're worth it :)

I used cloth diapers when I was home on maternity leave with my second child. They were nothing fancy like the nice set you have for your giveaway. However, I loved having a say in the expenses of the child, even without an income. I was able to help keep costs low until I went back to work, at which point for the ease of the babysitter, I switched to disposables. Had I had a set up like the one you are giving away, I'd have stayed with cloth! I have several co workers pregnant and I will be referring them to the Naughtybaby website to try to interest them in staying away from disposables. Good luck to all the mothers out there who could really benefit from your giveaway!

well you just gave me all the info I needed, i just found out I'm expecting my second child, and decided that this time around I will brave out the cloth diaper, for all the reasons you mentioned above, so this post came in perfect timing, as I start my research into cloth diapering, thanks again, you always seem to give us just what we need, and the prepper in me is lagging because I hadn't even thought of diapers in my storage :S

A lot of people find microfiber diapers/inserts hold the smell even after washing. I also used a biodegradable insert for a while then had to call roto rooter to unclog my pipes. I am very pro cloth but there are a lot of options out there. And be prepared to encounter problems, know you may need to teak your system or wash routine. My youngest and last no longer uses diapers, so please don't enter me in the drawing.

Thank you for this great insight! My wife and I are due with our first child that is a boy this fall. We had planned on using cloth diapers but reading this assured that to be the case! Thank you for doing the research and providing the information and possibility to try these cloth diapers for free.

I raised my first two girls (now 35 & 36) with cloth diapers and am the proud grandma of three. I have been doing foster care (past five years) and still prefer cloth diapers. All my babies are precious to me and deserve only the best. We adopted two this past year with one still in diapers and I would never consider disposable. I wasn't aware they had such stylish cloth diapers. Thanks for sharing this information with us and, yes, of course I would love a sample to try with my little ones!
Thanks!

My son is now 35, and he had cloth, liners, and some really cool wrap around Swedish plastic covers. These look awesome and certainly worth storing. The first thing I think of for a new baby gift is Diapers. We are praying there will be grandbabies some day, but it will be a difficult journey as the odds are against both of them. I am planning to stock up anyways. I can spent $75 on cloth, or $65-$75 on toss-away, and after I have spent my money on cloth, I still have the diapers. The other way, the money and the diapers are gone. They are sooooo cute!

I had a diaper service and used cloth diapers on all three of my, now grown, sons. I'm hoping to get my daughter-in-law to use cloth diapers on my future grandchildren and think that NaughtyBaby is just the answer. Thank you!

These diapers are darling and very practical as long as you have a washer and dryer. However, in an emergency situation where you are washing by hand and hanging to dry the flat diapers would be better. I've washed diapers by hand and hung them around the house to dry. Flat diapers dry much quicker. Believe me it is stressful on rainy 90º day when you're running out of clean diapers to have to turn on the oven in an attempt to speed up drying. I also think having a supply of disposables on-hand for such days would be wise. Back in the dark ages when my ds was a baby Pampers were yet to be invented.

Not only did I find them to be significantly more expensive on Amazon (in fact, they are as expensive as what I found in Target), I think it's actually extremely thoughtless and perhaps even rude to dismiss the generosity of Mark Elliott, who's freely donated 4 diapers to just giveaway to 2 of our readers, by directing people to an alternative website source for the diapers--especially when I've already done the homework and price research on the product. That being the case, publicly directing web traffic to someone else's site could easily be taken as disrespectful of my work on the matter as well.

Amazon doesn't just offer free shipping. They only offer free shipping if one purchases their Amazon Prime membership which runs $79 a year. Considering that one can also get free shipping from his site if you purchase 10 or more pieces, I'm comfortable with the conclusion I came to in featuring Mark's site vs. others. My checking account doesn't change one iota for encouraging readers to check out his site and Mark was surprised that I opted to give away the two sets that he provided me with, but I actually am committed to doing my homework on matters such as these and thus to dismiss it with a web link on the very site in which his generosity and my homework results are presented could be taken as gauche gauche towards me as well. Furthermore, paying to keep Amazon's electricity on does nothing to assist fellow preppers.

Awesome!!! I was wondering when cloth diapers were going to get a buttlift!!!! These are very cute and functional! The inserts make it more tolerable for cloth diapers. I grew up in cloth diapers and I had to change my sisters diapers intil mom discovered disposables. I personally prefer the cloth ones, but the mess afterwards is the only inconvenience.

I have used cloth and disposable diapers. You get a lot less rashes with cloth diapers but I love the convenience of disposables. I agree though, that we need to stock up on some cloth diapers. During short term emergencies like hurricanes, most people (preppers) with babies probably have a supply of disposables on hand but for long durations, cloth is the way to go. I would love to have some of the Naughty Baby diapers.

This is perfect! My first grandchild is due next January and my daughter plans on using cloth diapers. These sound just wonderful compared to the flat, sometimes flimsy cloth ones I used years ago. I would love to win a pair for her!

I love cloth diapers! I was hesitant on the switch, but being in the country and trying to keep up with burning disposable diapers, cloth became the only clear choice. Been loving it ever since! Would love to try this company and pass referrals on to friends!

Great timing Kellene, my daughter is having her 4th in November and stretching their dollars is something we are focusing on and this is a great idea to help do that, AND they are so cute. Hopefully they can ship to Canada...they would be the envy of every mom here!

Thanks, Kellene for reviewing these! I've done a lot of research on cloth diapers during this pregnancy but somehow missed this brand. Am off to check it out! I have a stash of different kinds to try when the little one gets here, and certainly wouldn't mind added a few more cloth diapers to the collection! LOL

Perfect timing!!! We've just been blessed with TWIN grand daughters AND the news from another offspring that an additional grand baby will be born next February. The grand daughters are in disposables, but my son and daughter-in-law will be using cloth on the one they're having. This will be the perfect gift to them!!! I'll also buy a "few" for the girls in an effort to tempt their parents to switch to cloth. I used cloth diapers on my sons 30+ years ago and always loved those fresh, soft diapers...

We use cloth diapers on or daughter and we actually did a challenge where we hand washed diapers for a week, it wasn't so bad, I wrote about it on our blog.

We typically use pocket style diapers (like Naughty Baby) but stuff them with flats instead of microfiber inserts because its more absorbent and much faster to dry. We'd love to win some new diapers, here's hoping!

I have a precious little granddaughter that could use these. I am forwarding this email on to my daughter-in-law. I don't know if she will go for cloth diapers, but I love the idea of having them for "just in case". Thanks for sharing this with us.

My mother-in-law sent me over here. I like the idea of cloth diapers, but from what I remember with my younger siblings I have not used cloth diapers for more than burp cloths. I would love to try these with my daughter. These seem that would be better than what I remember. They are definitely more cost effective than disposable diapers (I hate the cost of them, but she needs diapers). They would make a great just in case but if I liked them I would definitely get some more and use them on a regular basis. Thank you for the link to their website.

We are expecting our second grandbaby later this year and it would be great to try these out on the newest addition to our family. I plan to stock up on cloth diapers anyway, not only for our grandkids but to help out others who may have babies in a SHTF scenario.

I love cloth diapering. Also check out Elimination Communication, Natural Infant Hygiene, and Infant Potty Training. Really great. The way to go for a prep situation. I did this with my last baby. We never got all the way potty trained as an infant but used about 1/3 of the diapers we normally would have. When you are washing them it really makes a difference. Every poopy diaper avoided is a celebration! He could go potty at 6 weeks when I took him or happily in his diaper if I didn't. Fascinating.

I used cloth birdseye diapers on my three (45, 43, and 39), and had two in diapers at one time. I used disposable only with the last one and only when we were out of the house. There are still 4 dozen birdseye diapers in the laundry room cabinets. I use them for straining jelly. If I win these, I will give them to my grandson who may be marrying soon. None of my children use cloth. I think he will.

I don't know if it has been mentioned, as I have not read all the previous posts. You can purchase Naughty Baby diapers on Amazon.com which gives you free shipping. It may help you save a few pennies to put toward an order of wipes.

12 grandkids and another on the way, I get to tend lots and absolutely love it!
I store disposables in every size but would love the more permanent option for those occassional times when Moms forget to stock the diaper bag with enough for the day.

These look like just the ticket for our great-granddaughter who will be here next week while Mom is at church camp. Our daughter lives with us so she will be taking care of the little one while we get the smiles and giggles. Our babies used cloth, their babies used disposables but had problems with diaper rash and allergies so went back to cloth. So we shall see what the next generation needs. Day care wants disposables but we sure don't have to use it here! It also looks like a good product to have in the storage for "just in case". And this baby is just the tip of the iceberg with 8 more grandchildren coming of age in due time to present us with more great-grandbabies.

Loved this topic. I remember the days of cloth diapers and those horrible plastic pants. I also remember not having the money to go to the laundry mat, and washing those foul things first in the toilet, then hand washing in the tub. Then the fun times that we ran out of diapers and using some other piece of clothing that might surfice for awhile. OH, babies, so cute and not, all in the same sentence. Potty training was one of my best moments. These look really cool. And so much easier to use.

Buying disposable diapers is certainly a strain on the budget. We are in the process of making emergency kits for our family. These diapers look like a wonderful alternative to stuffing many diapers into our kit. I would love to try some of them for our baby girl. Thanks for all the wonderful info on your website. We are devout followers:)

I've been using cloth diapers on my own childen for 24 years and my little brother before that. I have seen them change from low tech to super fashionable. When I started with my own children, I could buy plastic pants with snaps... I miss those. I have been searching for an option as inexpensive as those used to be and until now, These might be what I've been looking for. Though it is hard to tell from the website, as you have already pointed out. I'll be showing these to my husband!

I am expecting number 4 and have used cloth with my other 3 kids. I like the looks of these diapers compared to what I've been using. I have 3 different sizes of diapers, and that's not very helpful on cost OR space. That's awesome that these fit such a size range. I'll definitely be checking into this brand... especially to support another prepper :)

Kellene,thank you so much for this info My daughter in law and son are expecting their first (,boy) and they want to be eco friendly and also want to be prepared.I grew up oldest of eight and remember lots of diaper changing and leaking .these look marvelous and I am going to buy them as a present .They look great and the price is right. Once again you have blessed us with great products for us preppers . God Bless you

I went to their website - I love their products. But I had a couple of questions but there's not even a contact page where I could email or call them. You're correct - they need a little help with their website - like more info about the products. For instance: where do they get the flushable nappie liners and what are they made of. The reason I wondered is because I looked at other brands and there are flushable liners made of various things - some more absorbable, some softer, etc. Grandmas want to know these things. I have a brand new grandson and would love to give these to his mom.

Oh Kellene, these are gorgeous! Just the thing to have on hand. I'm a couponer, too, and try to have a supply of diapers on hand, but the disposables are too bulky to store very many of them. These cloth diapers are definitely the answer...for all the reasons you state in your article. I'd be delighted to have some for my stockpile. God bless you for all the research you do and for sharing your finds!

Thank you so much for the article! My Hubbie and I are trying to have a baby, our first, and of course already trying to prep for it ;) You have a great website, and really helped us lean toward the cloth diapering. We have been looking for them locally but have had no luck so thank you for giving us a link to the website, we will start saving up for our order! Keep up the good work, you have gained two new followers!

Thanks for all of your time and energy to research--even diapers! I do the old fashioned cloth diapers, the square ones that you fold, because I've had them for so long (we just had our fifth child). But I still put him in disposables at night and when we are out and about because of leakage, and my cloth diapers are bulky. I'd love to try these snappy new diapers with microfiber inserts so I can go cloth all around and not have to buy disposables again! Thanks again for the information!!!

We just had new bundle of joy yesterday at 11:20 am. He was 9lb 3oz and 21 and half inches long. Mom and baby are fine. His name is Samuel and he would love to be styling new bum wear. Thanks for the heads up on the company..

I have been wondering how to start prepping for my new grandson (due October 8th). My daughter had done research and wanted to go with the cloth diapers and laundry service, however her husband wanted disposables. The battle began and unfortunately he won. It would be wonderful to provide a couple of samples for them to' rethink' the situation, along with a copy of your fabulous article of course. Will post your column on FB so they can also view it.
Thank you so very much for giving us another thoughtful article as well as a chance to win a sample.

Kellene
For years every time I go to a baby shower or give a baby gift, It is cloth diapers(12) rubber pants which are hard to find and diaper pins. I never have liked throw aways. Such a waste of money and it takes years to break down. Now my son and his wife are having a baby and this would be a great gift for them as they are preppers big time. Thanks for the suggestion.

I LOVE cloth diapers! I got to use them on several babies thanks to some friends and won't consider using anything else when I have babies of my own. So I say this with great hesitancy....when water supplies are low I don't want them. I think there is wisdom if possible to have at least some disposables. I have a friend who isn't a prepper who buys a new pack ever time her kiddo goes up a size. She normally never uses them and gives them to a mom who can use them when her little one out grows them. This practice started when she had to scramble to buy disposables because they were without water for about 2 weeks at her house. (Thanks to an ice storm) They packed up and moved to a hotel, but she was unable to wash. She normally washes every day to every other day. She didn't have the stash to go three + days without washing and they get a bit ripe pretty quick. Because of the ice storm she had to drive her two kiddos to several stores to even find diapers. Overall though, I agree, have cloth and actually know how to use them and what it takes to care for the ones you have. (Different ones have different care requirements)

I used disposables for my oldest and a combination of both for my youngest, cloth during the day and disposables at night or when we were out. I would highly recommend cloth diapers. My youngest daughter did not get the rashes and such with the cloth that my oldest got, and I was just as fastidious about keeping her dry and clean. It really isn't that much work, more laundry but when you have kids that's expected anyway. And as for potty training, way, way easier! I bought the best cloth diapers they had at the time, she's turning 24 so that was awhile ago lol

Thanks again for a great product review! After four wonderful kids, with the youngest being 6, we are privileged to be welcoming baby number 5 to our home in early December. We have really increased our preparedness efforts the last three years and are now actively looking ho to plan for a baby/toddler as we get closer to the birth. Thanks for this suggestion. And your drawings are always a nice bonus!

Love these diapers! Such an improvement over the ones I had with my children 20 something years ago. I have two grandbabies still in diapers and hopefully more to come. This brand is so reasonably priced compared to the others I have seen. We will be getting some of these!

I love cloth diapers! I have used cloth for all 8 of my children, starting with crappy gerber diapers/plastic pants (in 1996) with my first all the way through sewing my own. I have used flats, prefolds, fitteds, all in ones, hybrid diapers, you name it I have tried it. With that, for prepping and possibly needing to hand wash, flat diapers with PUL covers are the best. We have taken flats/covers on back-country camping trips to check our evacuation scenario preparedness they take less water to get clean and dry within an hour so we don't have to pack as many.

There is not a "perfect" cloth diaper solution for everyone. We also keep 2 cases of disposable diapers on hand in case of a "no extra water for washing" scenario.

I just found out my daughter is expecting their first child. We were just talking about diapers and she wants to use cloth diapers. What a "coincidence" you made this discovery of a new brand at this time. I will be sure to forward her this information. Thanks!

Thanks to everyone for making me feel young! Even though my first four children are all old enough to have their own babies I have not yet had the blessing of grandchildren. In fact, my wife and I actually had our own baby in April so I'm glad I have a child that isn't younger than a grandchild!!!

We chose to use a diaper service and it has been great. We pay just $24/month for as many diapers as we need. While I haven't used the product you mentioned I am completely sold on cloth. When you consider all the chemicals and environmental issues you outlined it was easy to decide. We have used just three disposable diapers since our daughter was born and even then I feel bad!

A decision to use and store cloth diapers for a long term situation forces some other considerations. Do you want to utilize precious stored water for washing diapers? A great question. I have a 1000 litre (265 gallon) water tank in my basement.. I'll definitely need a lot more although I do harvest a lot of rainwater which could be utilized from about April to November (the rest of the year I have barrels of ice!). So, another question, in a long term society down era, will the waste water infrastructure be intact enough to dispose of the sewage? If not, do you have a place to dump the unsanitary water? These are not insurmountable problems, just other things to consider.

I have four kids and two of them are in diapers. One is 18 mo and the other is a week old and is in the nicu due to him arriving 8 weeks early. I have very seriously thought of jumping on the cloth diaper wagon but have never made the plunge. From what I've read, I would really like to try the naughty diapers:-)

It's been a long, emotional, (and expensive) road getting here, but I'm happy to say that my husband and I are expecting twins in January. Our nephew is in cloth diapers, so we've been considering the same for our babies. I'd love to give the Naughty Baby a try. Thank you so much for the information. =)

Just so my readers are clear, while I'm fine with someone putting in their two cents, I don't condone buying something that a person can't afford, and certainly don't condone using PayPal at all. (I refuse to use them for any purpose.)

I know I'm late to the party here but I have a few thoughts on the matter. I have one child that I've used cloth on since birth. I love cloth and wouldn't go to disposables for a number of reason. That said, I think from a preparedness standpoint, there are lots of considerations. First, a pocket diaper, like the ones shown, are probably not the best option. I have pocket diapers and I love them. They're great for sitters or when we're out running errands. However, I purchased flats for an emergency situation. They are thin, flat cotton that are folded to fit baby. You can get waterproof covers or leave as is. They are fastened with a snappy, boingo, or pin. The benefit is they wash and dry much easier and faster than a pocket diaper. Also, they don't require as much special care as the pockets (which have microfiber and PUL that have specific care requirements). Plus, they're easier to sanitize if your LO gets an infection. However, I can imagine scenarios where diapers are really not an option (for example, when water is scarce). In that scenario, it might be best to be prepared to use elimination communication. That's where a parent observes the baby's cues when the baby relieves itself and is then able to 'read' those cues and can anticipate and 'catch' the baby's elimination in a designated 'potty,' (usually a bowl or cup for very small babies and a child's potty for a toddler). Saves money, time, and valuable resources.

I use Naughty Baby diapers as well and I love them. I purchased my diapers in large quantity after I received samples of various diapers and was able to view them off AliExpress.com and they had free shipping! They are very well made and the snaps work well. I love most of their designs and they don't leak. I think they are even more durable than BGs and are very affordable. Thanks for the review, I will include it on my website and forums when suggesting NBs